Backtests

A backtest lets you simulate capability performance against historical image data in an isolated environment, without affecting production biometrics.

How to request a backtest

To get started, contact the sales representative or technical account manager working with you. They will:

1. Confirm eligibility and align on the scope of the backtest.
2. Provide SFTP credentials (host, port, username, and password) for the upload environment.
3. Share the expected host-key fingerprint — verify it against the warning shown by your SFTP client before accepting the connection.

SFTP access

Once credentials are ready, use an SFTP client to upload your images:

• Windows: FileZilla or WinSCP
• macOS / Linux: Cyberduck or the built-in sftp command (sftp username@host)

Enter the host, port, username, and password provided by the team, then click Login. If an authentication warning appears, verify the host-key fingerprint against the one shared by the team before accepting. Once connected, the environment behaves like a desktop folder — drag and drop your files into it.

Image requirements

Images must follow these rules:

• Allowed extensions: jpeg, jpg, png
• File naming format: ID-NAME-CAPTUREDATE.EXTENSION
  • ID: CPF or other regional document identifier (e.g., national ID number)
  • NAME: full name — replace spaces with underscores (_); omit hyphens, accents, and other special characters (e.g., JOSE not JOSÉ, SMITH_JONES not SMITH-JONES)
  • CAPTUREDATE: date in ddmmyyyy format (day first, then month, then year)

Example: 01245698764-JOHN_SMITH-25122020.jpg (25 December 2020)

Quality parameters

Standard image quality rules (maximum 800 KB, ICAO compliance, portrait orientation, minimum resolution) are relaxed for backtests. Historical images captured under different conditions are accepted without compression or reformatting on your end.

How the backtest is performed

1. Images are downloaded from the SFTP server.
2. Unico's internal import pipeline processes each image automatically. You do not need to implement or call any operations on your side.
3. Data does not go to production biometrics.
4. Images that cannot be processed (for example, unsupported format or corrupted file) are flagged for manual review by the Unico team and do not affect the SLA of ongoing production analyses.

After the backtest

1. The technical team sends the results (synthetic and analytical models) to the team that requested the backtest.
2. After 1 week from completion, all data is deleted.
3. The instance is fully wiped (including users).
4. Biometric parameters are restored to normal.

Need help?

If you need additional assistance, contact the sales representative managing this process with you.